August 26, 1999

To:Planning and Transportation Committee

From:Acting Commissioner of Urban Planning and Development Services

Subject:Organizational structure for the new Committee of Adjustment (All Wards)

Purpose:

This report recommends the organizational structure for a new city-wide Committee of Adjustment, as requested by City Council prior to proceeding with the nomination process and subsequent appointments. The City Solicitor will submit the draft enabling by-law which is required by the Planning Act.

Financial Implications:

No additional costs would result from the recommendations in this report.

Recommendations:

It is recommended that:

(1)this report be referred to the Community Councils for review and comment to the Planning and Transportation Committee for its November 1, 1999 meeting;

(2)Council approve the following structure for the new Committee of Adjustment for the City of Toronto:

(i)the Committee operate as four District Panels corresponding with the four geographic Districts through which City Planning services are delivered;

(ii)the Committee comprise a total of 22 members assigned and nominated as follows:

North District: 5 membersall nominated by North York Community Council; South District: 7 membersall nominated by Toronto Community Council;

East District: 5 members2 nominated by East York Community Council and

3 nominated by Scarborough Community Council;

West District: 5 members2 nominated by York Community Council; and

3 nominated by Etobicoke Community Council;

(iii)the Committee appoint a city-wide Chair, to provide leadership for the Committee and each Panel appoint a District Chair to guide the process at the local level;

(iv)each Hearing be conducted by three of the respective District Panel members, the sitting members to be assigned on a rotational basis;

(v)each Committee Hearing be held during regular business hours; and

(vi)the Committee's four District Panels conduct Hearings in the following four locations: Toronto City Hall and the North York, Scarborough and Etobicoke civic centres;

(3)the City Solicitor be requested to prepare a by-law for presentation to and approval by City Council to constitute one Committee of Adjustment for the City of Toronto and to delegate approval authority to hear applications for minor variance/permission and for the creation of new lots by consent, as permitted by the Planning Act;

(4)City Council direct the City Clerk's Division, Corporate Services Department to commence the process for nominations by the Community Councils;

(5)the Committee of Adjustment, when constituted, be requested to appoint the City Planning Executive Director/Chief Planner or delegate(s) as its Secretary-Treasurer; and

(6)the Acting Commissioner of Urban Planning and Development Services submit a report to City Council, at the beginning of its next term, evaluating the new Committee of Adjustment's organizational structure.

Council Reference:

City Council requested this report at its meeting of April 13, 14, and 15, 1999 when it adopted, with amendments, the February 10, 1999 report, Policy for Citizen Appointments through the Nominating Committee and the Corporate Services Committee. At that meeting, City Council also terminated the terms of appointees to any Agency, Board, Commission or Tribunal of a former City effective December 31, 1999. As well, the Chief Administrative Officer was requested to report to the Administration Committee at its September, 1999 meeting on those committees requiring an extension of appointments to facilitate the nomination process.

My report on New Practices for the Review of Development Applications, which will be considered by Planning and Transportation Committee at its October 4, 1999 meeting, also recommends submission of an organizational structure report for the Committee of Adjustment.

Background (see Appendix 1):

The Committee of Adjustment's role is to provide for some flexibility in existing zoning controls, to facilitate infill redevelopment through the severance process and to sort out land title issues. All former municipalities had delegated the minor variance/permission and consent approval authority to their Committees of Adjustment, with the exception of the former City of Scarborough where consents are delegated to the Director of Community Planning, East District.

The Planning Act requires that citizen members of the Committee be appointed for the term of Council. To facilitate transition following amalgamation, the six Committees of Adjustment for the former municipalities, comprising a total of 34 members, have continued to operate until their successors are appointed.

City-wide, there are over 3,600 applications made to the Committee of Adjustment each year. For example, during the month of May 1999 (mid-point of peak season), the six existing Committees considered 286 applications and facilitated construction of 3 apartment buildings (600 units), over 170 new homes, 120 alterations/additions to existing homes and 40 commercial or industrial projects.

Discussion:

A critical review was conducted of the organizational structure in place for the six Committees of the former municipalities. Given the common legislative base, the Planning Act, the difference in practices, resources and service levels are remarkable, but understandable as varied approaches were developed over time in the cultures of the former cities. Staff proposals are set out below for harmonizing the organizational structure for the new Committee of Adjustment city-wide. These proposals provide a framework for development of common operations to offer consistent customer service levels across the new City.

1.Composition of the new Committee (see Appendix 2):

It is recommended that the new Committee be divided into four District Panels. The four Panels will correspond geographically and administratively to the four Districts through which all Community Planning services are delivered.

It is recommended that a total of 22 members be appointed to the Committee of Adjustment city-wide. Given the volume of applications received by the City, this is the minimum number of members required to conduct sufficient Hearings to consider each complete application within 30 days of its receipt. Each member's time commitment will involve about 18 Hearings per year with 15 to 20 hours per month.

The Planning Act requires a minimum of 3 Committee members to hear each application, as currently practiced in the South District. It is recommended that this approach be implemented city-wide. Although each District Panel would comprise 5 or 7 members, only three members would sit, as assigned on a rotational basis, at any given Hearing. The majority of applications considered by the Committee involve small scale projects and three members are sufficient to facilitate an open and fair decision making process. In terms of community involvement, a smaller panel is also less intimidating. The East and West District panels will consider applications under the by-laws of their two respective former municipalities (East York and Scarborough, Etobicoke and York) on the same Hearing agenda.

The following allocation for member nominations is recommended to reflect fair community representation:

North District: 5 membersall nominated by North York Community Council

South District: 7 membersall nominated by Toronto Community Council

East District: 5 members2 members nominated by East York Community Council, and

3 members nominated by Scarborough Community Council

West District:5 members2 members nominated by York Community Council, and3 members nominated by Etobicoke Community Council.

The Committee will appoint a Chair to provide city-wide leadership as harmonization continues. Each Panel will appoint a District Chair to guide the members at the local level.

2.Time and Location of Hearings:

It is recommended that all District Panels conduct Hearings during regular business hours. This is the current practice for the committees of the former municipalities of Scarborough, North York and Etobicoke. Experience has shown that the majority of stakeholders are satisfied with daytime Hearings. This will provide consistency city-wide, reduce peak season backlogs by allowing more applications to be heard at any one Hearing and ensure the most efficient use of limited staff resources.

It is recommended that Hearings for the East District and West District Panels be conducted at the Scarborough and Etobicoke civic centres, respectively. This will improve customer service for the East York and York communities by providing access to two hearings per month instead of one, while maintaining application intake and planning information services in the field offices located in the East York and York civic centres.

3.Member Qualifications:

The minimum qualifications for candidates, as adopted by City Council, are listed in Appendix 3. I am recommending two additional qualifications for Committee of Adjustment members, as follows:

(i)any person applying for appointment shall have an understanding of municipal government and community planning processes; and

(ii)any person applying for appointment shall have a broad awareness of the range of community concerns and planning issues in the District for which s/he is a Panel candidate.

At the time of application, each candidate should be required to indicate which District Panel s/he is applying for. This requirement should be clearly stated in the material used for recruitment and explained at the Orientation seminars. My staff is available to support the recruitment and nomination process.

4.Administrative support and budget:

The Committee's operations are part of the City Planning Division. The Planning Act requires that the Committee of Adjustment appoint a Secretary-Treasurer to administer its operations. I am recommending that City Council instruct the Committee to appoint the Executive Director and Chief Planner, or delegate(s), as Secretary-Treasurer for the City.

Members honoraria and expenses are included in the City Planning Division budget. In 1999, the total of honorarium allocations was over $185,200 for the 34 incumbent Committee positions. The Mayor's Task Force on Agencies, Boards and Commissions will be recommending a new schedule of honoraria. In my opinion, Committee of Adjustment members should receive one of the higher rates established, given the mandate and level of responsibility involved.

Conclusions:

The new organizational structure for the Committee of Adjustment is based on a critical review of the six existing operations to determine where resources and staff are best deployed to maximize results for the City. It will harmonize operations, improving the level of service while maintaining an open, accessible and equitable hearing process city-wide.

Continuous service improvement is an ongoing process. A further report outlining ongoing harmonization of the Committee's day-to-day operations will be submitted at the end of this year. As well, I am recommending that I report back to City Council at the beginning of its next term with an evaluation of the new organizational structure.

Contact Name:

Beate Bowron, Director of Community Planning - South District

Toronto City Hall

Phone: 392-0427Fax: 392-1330

E-mail: bbowron@toronto.ca

Paul J. BedfordJAMES RIDGE

Executive Director and Chief PlannerActing Commissioner

City Planning DivisionUrban Planning and Development Services

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APPENDIX 1: BACKGROUND INFORMATION

Appendix 3

QUALIFICATIONS FOR APPOINTMENT TO THE COMMITTEE OF ADJUSTMENT

Basic qualifications established by City Council for

• The Council of the City of Toronto shall make citizen appointments on the basis of equal opportunity. City Council recognizes that the City is best served by special-purpose bodies that fairly reflect the diversity of the community that they serve. Proactive strategies in achieving this result shall be followed.

• Any person applying for appointment shall be, and must maintain status throughout their term of office as:

-a qualified elector in the City of Toronto (i.e. a resident and or municipal property taxpayer, owner or tenant of land in the municipality, or the spouse of an owner or tenant);

-a Canadian citizen or landed immigrant;

-at least 18 years of age.

• Any person applying for appointment may not be an employee of the City or any of its Agencies, Boards or Commissions. Citizen appointees are required to maintain this status throughout their term of office.

• No citizen shall serve on the Committee of Adjustment at the same time as on another Agency, Board or Commission or external special-purpose body of the City of Toronto.

Additional qualifications recommended for Committee of Adjustment members

• Any person applying appointment shall have an understanding of municipal government and community planning processes.

• Any person applying for appointment shall have a broad awareness of the range of community concerns and planning issues in the District for which s/he is a Panel candidate.